Residents along Marilao River evacuated due to alleged oil spill

MARILAO, Bulacan – About 40 families of this town briefly left their houses on Sunday due to foul odor emanating from suspected hazardous waste dumped in a canal beside a flea market that drains to Marilao River.

Councilor Allan Aguilar told The STAR that residents started complaining of difficulty in breathing, chest pains and headaches around 2 p.m. on Sunday.

When they checked the source of the foul smell, residents saw thick black liquid that looked like used oil drained in a canal that flows parallel to the MacArthur Highway here.

“Napakabaho ng amoy kaya hindi nakatiis ang mga tao at naglabasan ng bahay nila,” said Bill Opallas, a vendor at the flea market above the drainage canal.

He said that he himself felt dizzy due to the foul odor, adding that the residents’ agony lasted for about 10 hours.

“Mabuti na lang umulan kagabi kaya madaling naalis yung amoy, pero hanggang alas-dose ng gabi ay umaagos yung mabahong langis,” Opallas said in an interview yesterday morning.

For his part, Mayor Efipa­nio Guillermo ordered an immediate investigation on the incident saying he will spare no one once the evidences are complete.

“In-organize na namin yung isang multi-agency team para matukoy ang pinagmulan ng mabahong likido,” Guillermo told The STAR in an interview yesterday.

The team that Guillermo organized is composed of the municipal health, engineering, planning and social welfare officers along the Environment and Natural Resources Office of the provincial government and the local police.

The group is tasked to identify the source of the chemical dump in the drainage canal.

With regard to local residents’ allegation that the chemical dumped came from a juice drink factory here. Guillermo said it’s too early to make conclusions.

“We are planning to conduct investigation sa loob ng mga factory dito sa Marilao para makita kung ano ang kalagayan ng kanilang water treatment facility,” Guillermo said.